Former UFC and Bellator referee “Big” John McCarthy has offered up his take on the controversial Holland vs Daukaus no-contest decision.
McCarthy told the “Weighing In” podcast that he sees declaring the fight no contest was the right move. For him, fighter safety and the sanctity of sporting competition are paramount, so preventing the bout from going any further – and discouraging overzealous fighters in similar situations – made sense.
“Big” John McCarthy Assesses Controversial Daukaus vs Holland No Contest Stoppage
“This is where all MMA referees make mistakes. This is not, ‘Oh, he’s fighting, let it go.’ You don’t do that, because if you see the head clash, many times you’ll see a head clash and neither guy responds to it all.
So instead of stopping the action, if there’s no cut or damage, you’ll come close to them and say, ‘Watch your head inside’ or something to that effect because you can see it did not affect either fighter,”
But if you have anything that shows there was an effect and a guy gets knocked down, if you say that I saw that was a clash of heads, and you see that a guy got knocked down, then then it’s time to go ‘Stop! Time!’
No matter if he comes back out of it, I’m going to get him up, I’m going to take him to the corner and let him clear out the cobwebs if there is that there. I’ll let the doctor look at him and see if the doctor will put him back in the fight.
I did it with Seth Petruzelli vs. Mo Lawal (at Bellator 96). They hit (heads), Mo Lawal went after him to finish him and he thinks I stopped the fight, he’s all excited. I go, ‘You clashed heads, that’s what hurt him.’ So you’ve got to take that time.
The thing is, the referee doesn’t want to interfere with the action in the fight. You have to interfere with the action in the fight if you see that it visibly caused damage to one or both fighters. You’ve got to give them time.”
It was Big John McCarthy who, after UFC 2, insisted on referee stoppages in mixed martial arts when a fighter was unable to intelligently defend themselves. He was involved in the banning of 12-6 elbows, strikes to the back of the head, and fighters putting their fingers or toes in the cage.
McCarthy’s experience as a referee and choice to always prioritize the health and safety of fighters in the cage is precisely why he became a legend of the sport.
Do you agree with his assessment here, or should Daukaus have been awarded the win? Let us know in the comments.
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